Ranger123

I don't think I see any northern ky team even close to Larue, Woodford, Fern Creek, or Trinity.

The only way I would go for dividing the state is if you had a tournament of champions to get to one in the end. And I agree, we need to add a lot more teams before we are ready to split.

On the individual side of wrestling, it doesn't matter. If St X and Trinity (just to pick on the big guys) are allowed to pay all of their athletes it doesn't affect the outcome. If a kid wrestles for Doss or Western or is "bought" by a private school you still have to beat him to take home the championship. Now from the team perspective, I agree, it makes a difference. Back to your question, I don't think that could happen at a public school. BUT, I don't think you can honestly say that this private school went out scouting the Indiana countryside looking for the kid to resurrect their program. I don't know the situation, but I would guess this is a kid who is crossing the river to get what his family considers the best education possible. And as far as we all know they have followed all of the rules. Didn't Isaac Knable do this same thing? If there was anything fishy going on, someone at one of the public schools in Louisville would have raised a stink by now. Remember Jordan Lewis.

Even though I think the state tournament is still up in the air (Larue, Woodford, and Fern Creek all have a good shot), I think Larue wins the state dual championship rather easily. They only have a couple weights that are not top notch kids (and I'm sure they will be solid wrestlers) and those happen to be at weights that are questionable for Woodford as well. I'm anxious to see a Woodford - Fern Creek dual. That should be an exciting one.

I did a quick search on intermatwrestle.com and found one more... Cody Zacur - Washington and Jefferson

You make a good point. But you can't make the assumption that just because he was close with the older brother then he beats the younger one. Ask the Warners about that one. Anyway, I think these two are really, really close. It's a toss-up.

How many good wrestlers are playing football? Tell us how many of the varsity guys on your team playing football right now. I was just wondering how the football playoffs impact the start of wrestling practice and how well the coaches and teams are working together. I think I've heard that Sheldon Clark gets a late start to "real" wrestling practice because of football. On the other hand, I don't know if Campbell County has anyone playing football.

Titan - there are a lot of ifs in that statement. I have him on the list, but not knowing his level of commitment to wrestling and if he will even be in Frankfort if he qualifies makes it tough to put him too high.

Are these the only 2 "messed up" things you see? Because if you're going to make a statement like that then let's hear what your opinion is. On Sullivan and Wood, we won't know until the season starts. And maybe not even then because I really don't think either of these guys knows what he is really going to do. We've heard from a lot of different sources, including the kids themselves, and still there are questions. The body fat test from last year doesn't mean a thing. If Caleb wants all he has to do is step on the scale the day of the test weighing 112 (adequately hydrated). If he is below the % then I'm guessing he will be able to get a doctors sign off. I don't think Caleb is doing this to challenge Sullivan. I think he is considering the team and trying to get a team title as well.

Is it too late to get a game between Fern Creek and McCreary on the schedule? I want to see Chaney and Watson meet in the hole before they meet on the mat.

That's a scary thought. Deon Chaney coming through the line as a blocking back or trying to pound it in on the goal line.

Great ideas, especially for out-of-season meets! And it sounds like a great tournament! But some of those ideas cannot help a high school event, for example, weigh-ins the night before. Also, with tight budgets and a shortage of officials, it is tough to get extra officials.

This is the sort of thing I hate to hear. The football coach sees some good athletic talent (that you have helped to develop), recruits them out to the football team (a good thing), but then discourages wrestling. I'd like to get about 4 minutes on the mat with a coach like that. I'm not sure I can go 6 minutes anymore.

I think that is ok. You send in the lineup that you expect and if guys don't make their weight then they are not seeded. Don't spend and hour (or 2) trying to fix and re-seed the brackets. Just bump them to an open spot in the weight class above.

They should be just as strong as last season. They lost 6 seniors from a tough team that finished 7th (0.5 points behind Oldham Co for 6th). 2 of those guys went 0-2 at state. The other 4 guys went a combines 14-8, but only Hooper and Poulton finished with a medal. The 8 returning state qualifiers all won matches and went a combined 23-18 with 4 winning medals. From what I'm hearing those guys are not bumping up in weight and should be pretty strong at their weights. Plus, I'm sure they will bring in a young guy or two to fill in the holes. They probably won't challenge for the state title, but will definitely be in the running for a regional title and top 10 at state.

To give you a little sneak peek and update on region 5... At 125 Zeppa moves up from 119 and Kendrick Jones of Ballard makes the cut. With Zeppa out of 119 Steve Vaughn of SO is next at 119.

I personally think they will struggle this year. It will likely be their low point in a little while. Last season was their lowest finish at state (14th) in like 15 years. And they lost some talent, toughness, and leadership in Rust, Brownfield, Wilson, and Hildreth. That will be tough to replace on a team that was pretty young and not real deep. BUT, I know they have some good young kids coming up and as I have said in the past, I'm a big Bankemper and Campbell County fan. I think they will turn it around pretty quicky.

Pretty neat. And the best part is that this site is getting more and more popular every day. Keep telling your friends, teammates, and yes, even your parents about it.

It doesn't have to take much effort or technology to communicate records. If we concede that a couple of these guys are so technologically handicapped that they can't even have an assistant or athletic director send in a roster with records, then pick up a phone. If that is too hard, then yes, I say don't invite them back.

I'm not advocating doing that, but just saying that we shouldn't let coaches who refuse to participate (or can't for some reason) in Thursday or Friday seeding meetings slow the process down. I think everyone can email a roster with records at a minimum. Plus, if we could get more coaches participating on this site and turning in results, then we have another tool to aid in the seeding process if needed.

I know what you mean as I was bit by #1 before in a round about way. I was #1 and another kid (whose coach thought he could get 2nd) threw him into the draw rather than take the #4 seed. He drew me first round and I didn't show up and he kicked my butt. But that's the way it goes. Yes, things won't always work out nice and neat, but just wrestle the guy who lines up against you. On #2, too bad. If that's all it takes to speed up tournaments, then I say too bad. If Coach Badida, Simmons, and Reigel want to get kids seeded, then get access to email or have your assistants do it.

Obviously, you can look at the current rankings (Sept 8) to get my opinion on the matter. But some possibilities that could make the class much more interesting are 1) Ben Warner possibly being at 135 or 2) Peace making 135. I don't see those happening right now, but that would give Howard a load of competition.

I would give a lot of credit to Coach Thomas and to the kids that are sticking with it. I know he has lost a couple talented kids because of attitude and other things, but the kids that are gutting it out are getting better.

I'm not sure what you are getting at regarding Moore? The middle school state placers from the last couple seasons are Tommy Warren (at Fern Creek), Willbanks (finished 3rd to Slone and Ohlman, ranked at 125), Alex Griego (not sure how he fits in the lineup), and Jonathan Becerra (maybe at 103). Placing at MS state doesn't immediately put you in line for placing at the HS level. Especially if you hit a growth spurt. I'm sure Coach Thomas will continue to develop those kids and you will see Moore improving in the coming years. It looks and sounds like the school is giving him a lot of support. Hopefully the kids and parents will do the same.

You will never see 5-7 mats in KY. 3 maybe 4 is the max. That is a huge difference. Using the forum is a fantastic idea. Hey Mathound, what do you think of coaches signing onto the forum to host a preliminary seeding meeting on a Thursday or Friday night? Just my opinion, but if coaches know they need to send in info ahead of time and don't then I say too bad, your kids are just drawn into the bracket.